There’s no need to pack that neck pillow either. The world’s shortest international flight can be done in only eight minutes. The Aruba Airlines flight last week took travelers 50 miles from Aruba to Punto Fijo, Venezuela, in minutes.

The flight runs twice a week on Mondays and Fridays, allowing travelers from Venezuela to connect to Curacao, Bonaire, and Miami. The short trip starts at $215.

This is especially exciting considering that this January, Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro, stopped air and sea travel to Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao after accusing the neighboring islands of taking resources from the country.

A Swiss airline previously had an eight-minute international flight as well, but the service was canceled last year due to lack of interest.

The shortest commercial flight in the world is awarded to Loganair’s less-than-two-minute flight from Westray to Papa Westray in Scotland.

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Families looking for a fun adventure this summer can sign up for the Stockport Brows and Bridges Trail “braille treasure hunt” in the UK’s Greater Manchester area. The goal of the treasure hunt is to raise funding and awareness for the difficulties that a vision-impaired person faces on a daily basis. The project was launched by the Walthew House, a charity for individuals with sight and hearing issues.

The treasure trail lasts about two hours and will challenge explorers to solve clues on plaques, signs, statues, images, monuments, and other features.

They also plan to host sign language events so deaf people can participate as well!

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Oh, That’s Where That Shoe Went!

Remember that one time you went to Bali and lost one, or even both, of your flip-flops? So does one artist who used that missing shoe to send a message to beach patrons everywhere. Artist Liina Klauss of Germany created a visually striking installation using over 5,000 discarded flip-flops, hoping to raise awareness of plastic waste found in the ocean.

(Photo by Potato Beach Club, Bali)

The installation, 5,000 Lost Soles, can be seen at Potato Head Beach Club at the south end of Bali. The flip-flops were all found along the west coast of Bali, gathered by a team of helpers in a series of six beach clean-ups.

The artist said she used flip-flops because they are used directly on an individual’s body, creating a direct connection between a person and their impact on the earth.

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Calling All Herbivores!

If you are a traveler hoping to avoid eating meat, Switzerland was named the top country in Europe to be a vegetarian.

In a new study by the Eco Experts, 26 European countries were compared, looking at the vegetarian-friendly restaurants available, the amount of meat consumed annually, and the price of meat per kilogram. Switzerland won, while the UK placed highly at number 5. Portugal was named the least friendly at number 26.

Switzerland is home to over 165 vegetarian-friendly restaurants and has the lowest meat consumption per year.

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Thank you for reading this week’s round-up! If you’re interested in learning what it’s like to expatriate, don’t hesitate to ask some questions. At Escape Artist, we aim to ensure that your travels abroad run as smoothly as they can.

For more information on what’s going on in the international scene, check out some of this week’s newest articles!

P.S.Do you have questions about how to live abroad and what the experience is like? Are you looking for international investment opportunities? Want to meet like-minded people who are in the same boat as you? Come hang out with other EA readers and the Escape Artist staff! We will be hosting an event this year and can’t wait to meet you!

Click here to find out more informationand to stay in the loop on locations and dates! It’s important that this event be exactly what YOU want – no alternate agenda or product pitches! This is about answering YOUR questions! In order for the event to be a success, take a second to fill out this survey. By sending us your thoughts, you can tailor the event to your specific overseas needs. We will also be supplying a 10% discount during registration to everyone that filled out the survey to make the event possible!

Anytime is a good time to visit Panama. It is a beautiful country all year round. Just like anywhere else, though, there are better times than others. Like many Latin American countries, Panama is bustling with festivals and fiestas that are always worth traveling for. Before planning trips around these, be sure you’re not going to let the weather get in the way of your fun time.

Panama has two seasons: wet and dry. Dry season is referred to by the locals as their summer. It begins in December and runs through mid-April, and it features the hot weather you’d be seeking for a nice Caribbean vacation without the rainfall you’d get during the rest of the year.

Teak is originally from Southeast Asia, natively growing in Myanmar, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Malaysia. It is known for growing best in a tropical climate and is so valuable that it has grown harder and harder to find on that side of the globe. In fact, in some countries, like Myanmar, it is no longer legal to harvest.

Myanmar was supplying about 75 percent of the world’s teak supply, but in so doing, was greatly de-foresting its own land. It makes sense that it would take measures to heal itself from the devastation from so much logging, but then there begs the question, where do we get more teak?

If you want to improve the performance of your retirement account, consider investing offshore. If you want to get in on the best ICOs or buy a rental property in a high-value international market, you’ll need to convert your retirement account into a self-directed IRA. When you go offshore, you need to watch out for disqualified persons in a self-directed IRA. Here’s how to stay within the rules when you’re offshore.

When you invest a portion of your retirement abroad, or move your entire account offshore, you must follow the same rules as if that account were in the United States. If you’re caught cheating, the penalties will be swift and severe… and your entire account might be affected (not just the portion you used for the improper investment).

Most investors have a U.S. custodian to help them stay within the lines. When you invest using a self-directed account, your custodian is always…

Escape Artist is a community of individuals and organizations that have a shared interest in international living, working, traveling, investing and retiring. For many, many years now, Escape Artist has been bringing these like-minded individuals together. What it has resulted in is one of the strongest online communities in the world for those looking to take their lifestyles international.